Many of us in medicine struggle to justify why we should slow down and give ourselves a break.

We’re used to putting others’ needs before our own.

We’re used to unrelenting unrostered overtime; oncall callbacks at 3am; weekend shfits trickling into birthdays and holidays; and working through illness.

If only there was a book that helped us justify to our evidence-based selves WHY we need to rest.

Alex Soojung-Kim Pang does this brilliantly in his easy-to-read manual, “Rest.”

Alex is a Silicon Valley consultant used to seeing that other modern group of trophy chronic overworkers - tech workers.

No longer is “hustling,” “crushing” and “burning it” a badge of honour for your work.

And no longer are you badgering yourself for not “working hard enough”. You probably already are. This book teaches you how to work SMART.

Doctors know well (or should know!) that as physiologic stress hormones, chronic raised adrenaline and cortisol (which are essential hormones that help regulate our daily functions in normal health, not an evil in themselves!), can lead to raised blood pressure; heart disease; higher stroke risk; obesity; cancers; some thyroid disorders; some autoimmune conditions; and other conditions. As part of the body’s natural homeostasis/resetting, we all need sleep; good nutrition; regular exercise; and unregulated downtime- sitting and doing nothing, allowing ourselves to drift to boredom and creativity. (They say having bouts of boredom in our lives actually helps fuel creativity and innovation- hence why people struggle when they try to find a “job they love” that never bores them 24/7- the fact is, those peaks and troughs even in your dream pursuit, help you stay stimulated, curious and engaged with your passion!)

When we set that homeostasis out of whack due to shift work; chronic long hours (and everyone has a different set point for when they feel tired after a certain number of hours - your 40-hour week may be someone else’s 100-hour week!); irregular sleep habits; poor diet; and basically being “on” all the time; eventually, our bodies catch up and physically can’t take it anymore without an even longer rest, if it ever recovers.

Workplace burnout has recently been recognised by the World Health Organization as a “workplace syndrome” classified by the International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-11. This makes it even easier for us, whether we’re in medicine, tech or otherwise, to recognise signs of burnout, and the need to switch off and rest as part of our work/life routine.

Alex’s book gives tips from his research and work on this subject, and illustrates it with anecdotes from scientists who’ve raised productivity through napping; Stephen King’s writing routine; the benefits of walking; and other simple, inexpensive and time-effective measures for longevity in your work-life continuum. Like most books we recommend, it’s easy to read on the train, in bite-sized pieces, or all at once during your favourite reading time.

It’s unpredictable, it follows no rules (not always anyway, despite our best work as clinicians and scientists, biology is unique and will play its own role in each of us), and it hits you when you least expect it.

It’s damn frustrating, because our daily lives are built around routine, around schedules for work and appointments and goals and personal life. But illness doesn’t follow a schedule. The world doesn’t sit still while you suffer.

So what can you do?

You try to pace yourself, and take time off.

You limit your commitments; you rest; you take a break.

Then, when you feel better, you return to work, to your startups, to your passions - to your life as usual - and BAM! It hits you again. Or some other calamity related to the illness.

And think about the emotional trauma of impending bereavement; grief; or other foreshadowing..

Imagine this happening again, and again, and again, and again…..

This is reality for millions of people around the world.

And if it’s not cancer, child-related, or pregnancy-related, often the people affected are suffering in SILENCE- the kind where no one understands what’s going on with you.

How on earth can you live #lifeasusual while fighting something that’s bigger than you, that has no rule book, that pays no heed to your wishes, that doesn’t reward you for good rest and nutrition and self care?

You can recognise the things you can control.

All you can control is right in this moment.

The present.

Being mindful of your surroundings; of your circumstances; of the thoughts, fears and hopes in your head.

You can control your breathing; whether you take a step forward or back (literally); whether you choose to sit in stillness, or with a book and pen, or with headphones on the train, or holding your loved one’s hand.

You can accept that things aren’t right for now, and possibly won’t be ever again, instead of trying to hide those feelings; and that makes it easier to take your next step.

It’s tough while running the startups in your life, tough trying to keep all the wheels in motion while trying to be there for yourself and others who are most important to you.

Allow yourself to not listen to those who don’t understand- because there are many, unfortunately, who will choose not to.

What saddened me when I dug deeper into medical startups in 2016 was that, quite often, success was seen as something to achieve at all costs, with no respect for customers, colleagues, or the wider community.

Even if a brand has a carefully constructed facade, it will all fall apart behind the scenes if you don’t genuinely care.

Coming from the similarly ruthless world of physician training, I found it very disappointing, especially when startups and the entrepreneurial world are trying to attract more clinicians.

Most clinicians are attracted to healthcare because of the caring aspect. They genuinely want to help make a great contribution to people’s lives, through direct patient-clinician contact.

That compassion and vulnerability can be misused by unscrupulous individuals and companies, and even with a strong Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program, the WHY behind the company can be lost.

Is any industry safe from this?

No.

But it’s up to us, the individuals, to keep our values in mind, and live them.